The Last Year
by RangerFromTheNorth
Summary: Lily Evans is in her last year of Hogwarts, and she is the Head Girl. But who should be her partner but her one-time enemy James Potter. But...he's different. He's changed...for the better. And Lily finds herself enjoying his company. Watch their journey - from enemies to acquaintances to friends to friends with potential to...significant others?
1. Chapter 1

**The Last Year**

Chapter 1

Lily Evans sat at her desk, scribbling a summer Potions assignment. A clicking sound filtered in through her concentration-induced fog of oblivion. She glanced up, brows furrowed. An impatient-looking brown owl was tapping at her bedroom window. Lily stood resignedly and opened the window, collected the letter and sent the owl on its way again.

Lily sat back down, flipping the letter over. It was to her, from... "Hogwarts!" Lily ripped open the envelope, too eager to notice the paper cut which resulted of her violent opening. She unfolded the parchment and scanned it, "...We are pleased to inform you that due to your stellar grades, personality, and leadership capabilities, you have received the post of HEAD GIRL?!" she finished out loud, her voice rising in pitch with each word.

Lily dropped the parchment and searched for the envelope. It wasn't on her bed...or the floor...or her desk. Lily began to panic slightly...until she saw the glimmer of green ink on her lap. She sighed in relief, then snatched up the envelope and rooted wildly through it. There it was! Her shining badge, emblazoned with HG - Head Girl.

The girl flung herself out of her room and down the steps, shrieking. "MUM! I GOT THE BADGE! I'M HEAD GIRL!"

Maria Evans hurried from the laundry room, wiping her hands on a dish towel, and smothered her youngest daughter in a hug. "That's wonderful, Lily! Congratulations! This deserves a celebration. What would you like for dinner? And here you thought you wouldn't be getting it," she added jokingly.

"I'd like lasagna, and garlic breadsticks, and oatmeal raisin cookies. I can help you cook," Lily added.

"Sounds good, honey."

"And actually, Mum, I was pretty sure I was going to get it. I just didn't want to say so in case I was wrong."

Mother and daughter laughed together. Unbeknownst to them, Petunia Evans watched them bitterly. They could have been sisters, Petunia thought. She herself might have been adopted - she had thin blond hair, a long neck a thin, horsey face, and was a good deal taller than usual. Mr. John Evans was below average height with dark brown hair and almond shaped hazel green eyes. Mrs. Maria Evans was petite, with dark auburn hair that had been brighter in her youth, and lovely green eyes. Lily was a spitting image of her mother, with the shape of her father's eyes. The idea only served to fuel Petunia's jealousy.

Lily's older sister stepped from the stairwell, lifting her chin in order to look down her nose and making her voice as snobby and sarcastic as she could. "It's a shame _someone_ thinks you're capable, seeing as _sensible_ people steer clear of freaks. You'd do well to do the same...oh, wait. I forgot. _You're_ the freak in this family." She smirked and flounced away.

Lily looked angrily at the spot her sister had vacated, willing back the stinging tears in her eyes. Petunia's words hurt her more than she cared to acknowledge...they'd been best friends once...and now they were bitter enemies. Petunia didn't understand the fact that Lily was a witch. She hated that her rather unruly younger sister was her parent's pride and joy. She couldn't see that it was her own bitterness and cruelty that kept her distanced from her parents. In short, she was jealous.

"Lily..." her mum seemed to be searching for words that would allow her to pardon Petunia's behavior. They didn't come. Finally she gave up and sighed. "You know how your sister is."

Lily, halfway up to her room, sighed sadly. "Yes. I know."

* * *

Lily lay on her bed on her stomach, rereading the letters from her best friends. Lily'd sent them both letters, telling them she was Head Girl and asking if they had any idea as to who the Head Boy might be. Marlene McKinnon had no idea, but Alice Prewett suggested it might be Frank Longbottom. Lily deemed this unlikely. There was nothing wrong with Frank - he was great at Herbology and very kind, and Lily counted him as one of her friends- he just didn't have enough leadership ability and dedication to schoolwork to be able to deal with the responsibility that came with the duty of Head Boy.

Were there any boys in seventh year Gryffindor that might get the badge? Lily ran through them in her head. Frank...Peter...Remus...Sirius...James. No, she didn't think any of them would get it. Lily sighed, having hoped that she would be working with a fellow Gryffindor. Now, with her luck, she'd have to be doing points tallies, reports, supervising detentions, patrolling, and all the other head duties with a Slytherin. Ugh.

* * *

Lily hugged her mum. "I love you, Mum."

"I love you, too, Lily. Have a great year, good luck being Head Girl, don't forget to write, and come home for Christmas!"

"I will!" Lily took her trolley and started toward platform 9 3/4, turning back once to wave. Lily glanced surreptitiously around. No one was looking in her direction...Lily broke into a jog toward the metal barrier between platform nine and ten, and found herself in the completely empty Platform 9 3/4. She'd never seen it empty before - usually she arrived at least a half hour later, when the Platform was packed with the bodies of students and their parents. Lily decided not to get on the train yet - she would be the only one on it, and it would take ages to find her friends. Lily sat down on a bench in front of the magical barrier and waited, watching as the station slowly filled up, but there was no sign yet of her best friends. Oh, well. Lily decided to get on the train and sit in their usual compartment. She lugged her trunk over to the third car of the scarlet Hogwarts Express.

This would not be easy. Lily's trunk was about as heavy as she was, and an awkward rectangular shape that was _extremely_ difficult to get up the steps to the train. Lily lifted one end, grunting, and tried to drag it behind her up the steps. It didn't budge. Several attempts later, the trunk was in the same position it had been ten minutes ago. Lily sighed and straightened, rubbing her protesting back. She was glancing around to ask someone for help when a friendly voice sounded from behind her.

"Hi, Lily."

Lily turned around, tucking her runaway strands of red hair behind her ear. "Remus! How was your summer?"

The tall boy with light brown hair shrugged. "Same old, same old. And yours?"

"Nothing new. My sister didn't speak to me for most of it, which, I suppose, was a blessing in disguise."

Remus nodded. Lily and Remus had been the sixth year Gryffindor prefects and during patrols had established a friendly acquaintance, so Remus knew all about Lily and Petunia's stormy relationship. "I'll bet," he agreed. "How did she react when she found out you were Head Girl?"

"I believe her exact words were, '_It's a shame someone thinks you're capable, seeing as sensible people steer clear of freaks. You'd do well to do the same...oh, wait. I forgot. You're the freak in this family!'._

Lily frowned. "Wait, how do you know I'm Head Girl?"

Remus grinned for the first time. "Lily, the fact that I know you is explanation enough. Who else could it possibly be?"

"Do you know who Head Boy is?"

Remus shrugged. "I suppose we'll find out in the meeting."

"I thought it might be you."

He shook his head. "No. They offered at the end of last year, but I refused."

Lily nodded, accepting his meager explanation, then turned back to her trunk. "Could you help me with this?"

"If you return the favor."

A few minutes later, Lily and Remus set off down the train, chatting idly, before Lily left him at her usual compartment. She pulled open the door and dragged her trunk in, expecting it to be empty. It wasn't.

"You're Head Girl, Lily! Congrats!" Alice squealed, engulfing Lily in a hug. Lily disengaged herself and hugged Marlene, too. Marlene grinned.

"How was your summer, Lily?" Marlene asked.

"Petunia gave me the cold shoulder. How about you?"

"We changed our plans at the last minute and went to America instead of Italy."

After several minutes of summer talk, Marlene changed the subject. "Have you found out who the Head Boy is yet, Lily?"

"No. I talked to Remus earlier, he doesn't know either, and it's not him. There's no chance that it's Peter, and I doubt it's Frank or Sirius Black. And there is NO WAY it could be Potter."

The three girls talking together could not have been more different. It made Lily think that there might be some truth to the saying opposites attract. Marlene McKinnon was tall, athletic, with long brown hair, and very talkative, never shy. Alice Longbottom was the quietest of the three, rather shy, and had a round, friendly face, blue eyes, and naturally curly blond hair. She was somewhat below average height. Lily was striking, with dark red hair, pale skin, green eyes, and the stereotypical redhead temper. She was average height and slender, which made her seem taller than she was.

* * *

Several minutes after Lily gasped, looking at her watch. "I've gotta go for the Prefect's meeting. I'm almost late. Bye!" She dashed out of the compartment and down the train. She bolted into the first car to see only a few of the prefects already there. She wasn't late. Lily headed to the front of the room and looked at the list of things she had to tell the prefects. This would be easy. After being a prefect for two years, she already knew all this. Glancing up she counted all the prefects silently. Good...just one missing. She could start soon. Just then, the compartment door opened to admit Remus Lupin and James Potter. Potter. What was he doing here? Relax, Lily told herself. He probably just walked over with Remus. This idea was dispelled when James Potter made his way through the prefects toward the Head table, next to Lily.

"If you ask me out again, I am going to hex you out the train window, Potter." Lily hissed.

Potter didn't say anything, just turned toward the prefects and began to speak. "Hello. I'm James Potter, and I'm Head Boy."

No, Lily thought. It can't be. Dumbledore couldn't be stupid enough to appoint JAMES POTTER Head Boy. He couldn't. He was. There was his badge, pinned onto his robes. Lily realized the prefects were watching her, seemingly waiting for her to speak. "I'm Head Girl, and my name is Lily Evans."

Potter launched into a speech about the duties of the prefects, occasionally stopping to let Lily insert a few words here and there. "That's pretty much it," he finished. "Anything to add, Lily?"

"Yes. Remember, prefects can take points, but you have to be fair about it. And if you feel that someone needs a detention, you have to talk to either of the Head students or any Professor to verify the reason and detention. The Prefect meetings will be every two weeks, and you will get a notice for the place and the time. Now, as you leave, please sign up for a patrol time. The parchment is at the door."

Lily sat back down as the prefects filed out.

Potter sat down next to her, looking slightly nervous. "I know you don't like me very much, and I know that I haven't given you much reason to like or trust me, but I intend to take this seriously. We're going to be working together a lot this year, and it would be much easier if we could get along."

Lily took a breath. "So..."

Potter looked her in the eye. "Friends?"

Lily hesitated. "Casual acquaintances, for now," she decided. "Maybe friends later."

* * *

Lily walked down the train, trying to reconcile the new Potter to the old. Last year he had taken any possible opportunity to ask her out, or embarrass her in public. He was an egotistical prat who didn't care about other people's feelings, schoolwork, or responsibility of any sort. That was why she had hated him. But...if he had changed, there was no reason why they couldn't be friends eventually.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Last Year**

Chapter 2

With the Sorting over, students of four houses, seven ages, and two genders watched anxiously as Dumbledore stood and spread his arms, looking like he was preparing to make a lengthy speech. "I have a number of words to say to you all, but now is not the time. Bon appetit!" The four house tables filled with food of all sorts, and the hungry students piled their plates high. The Great Hall filled almost instantly with the noisy chatter of students who hadn't seen each other in three months.

Less than an hour later, when the weight on the creaking tables diminished, Dumbledore stood again. "Welcome, students. I hope that your time spent within these walls will be happy, safe, and that you learn much to fill your empty heads with. Now, as the name implies, entrance to the Forbidden Forest is forbidden, for your own safety. Magic is not to be used in the corridors, and if you wish to see a list of items whose use in not allowed in this school, you may see the list on Mr. Filch's office door. Our Head students for this year are Lily Evans and James Potter, both from Gryffindor." Dumbledore motioned to them to stand. James grinned cockily and ran his hand through his hair, eliciting a good amount of swoons from the girls near him. Lily laughed at their expressions and sat back down. Dumbledore waited for the applause to die down before continuing, "Join me in my office after dinner, please. Now, prefects may lead your Houses to the common rooms. You know the passwords. Goodnight!"

The benches screeched across the stone floor as the prefects gathered the first years of their house and began leading them to the common rooms. Within a couple minutes, the Great Hall was almost empty. Lily turned to her friends. "What does Dumbledore want, Lily?"

Lily shrugged. "I bet he's just going to tell us about all our duties. Probably basically what we did for the prefects."

Alice nodded, and dragged Marlene away. "Bye!" she called over her shoulder.

Lily smiled. "See you later." She looked around the Great Hall, debating whether she should walk with Potter or alone. He didn't seem to be in the Great Hall anymore. Well. Lily thought. That made my decision easier. She headed off, singing under her breath.

Just before reaching the Headmaster's office she saw Potter stroll out from behind a tapestry. He grinned and ran his hand through his untidy pitch black hair. "Hey Evans."

"Hey," Lily replied cautiously. They stopped in front of the gargoyles. "Do you know the password?"

"Sugar Quill." The gargoyles moved aside, revealing a narrow circular stairway. Potter bowed. "Ladies first."

Lily smiled slightly and went up, with Potter following. Lily stopped before the tall, imposing door, and knocked twice. Dumbledore's voice sounded from inside.

"Come in."

They came in. Dumbledore sat behind his desk and gestured to the two hardback wooden chairs in front of his desk. "Sit."

They sat.

"First of all, congratulations on receiving your badges. It is definitely not an easy job, but does come with several benefits." He handed them each a scroll. "I expected you would be tired, so I have written a description of your duties here. Not only will you not have to listen to me drone on and on, but you will be able to refer to this if you have any questions." He stood.

"If you would join me on a walk, Mr. Potter and Ms. Evans, I have one of your benefits to show you."

Lily and Potter followed Professor Dumbledore through the castle. "Now, I am aware that you two do not hold each other in the highest regard, but as Heads you will need to set an example for the younger students. There is also a great deal of time that you will be spending together with your duties. It would be much more pleasant, not to mention easier, if you could establish a companionship, if not friendship."

"We've already talked about that, Professor. I think we'll be able to work together without too many problems," Lily hurried to reassure him.

"Good."

He stopped in front of a portrait of a dancing couple. Lily thought she'd seen it before, but she couldn't remember where. "These are your Head rooms. You may agree on your own password and change it whenever you like. Goodnight." Dumbledore strode away, his long auburn hair and robes flowing behind him.

"Well," Potter broke the silence. "What do you want for the password?"

Lily thought for a moment. "Something our friends will never guess."

Potter nodded. "How about a line?" he asked hesitantly.

"What...type of line?"

The man in the portrait broke in. "If you wish, you may each have your own password. If you are unable to decide on one."

Potter nodded again. "Alright. In fourth year Remus showed me this and it kind of stuck in my head. There was more, but I can't remember it." He cleared his throat. "'And to be wroth with one you love doth work like madness on the brain.'"

"Christabel!"

Potter looked at her oddly. "Huh?"

"It's the title of the poem! Christabel, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge!"

He looked mystified. "I was reciting a _poem_?"

Lily nodded. "It's one of my favorites. I think I have a copy with me, if you want to see."

"Thanks. Do you want to use that one then, for the password?"

Lily nibbled her lower lip. "Let's do two, just in case." She looked at the portrait to verify. "We can do that, right?" The man in the picture nodded.

Lily took a breath.

"Fat and skinny went to bed,  
Fat rolled over and skinny was dead,  
Fat called the doctor  
and the doctor said,  
'What's that pancake doing in a bed?'" Lily chanted.

Potter burst out laughing. "Did you think that up?"

Lily laughed. "Unfortunately, no. But my older sister is really skinny, and her boyfriend is the fattest person I have ever seen."

"What's his name?"

"Vermin."

Potter stared at her. "_Really?_"

Lily sighed. "No. His name is Vernon, but all I ever call him is Vermin. I can't stand him."

Potter nodded understandingly. "Yours is better. Shall we go in?"

The portrait swung open. Lily and James stepped in together.

"Wow..." Lily breathed. They had stepped into a room, somewhat like the Gryffindor common room, but a good deal smaller; obviously only meant for two people. The stone walls were bare, and the floors wooden. A large rug covered the floor before the fireplace. Three couches and two armchairs surrounded the fire, and there was a low table between the couches. Two desks with chairs were in two of the corners, already supplied with parchment, ink, and quills. Bookshelves covered one wall. The right side was already filled with books, but the left was empty, presumably for the Heads to add their own. There were three polished wood doors on the wall opposite the portrait hole.

Lily moved for a closer look at the doors. The door on the left was engraved in silver with her name - Lily Evans - in her own curling handwriting. The middle door was plain, and the door on the right was engraved with James Potter in solid black letters.

Lily opened the door engraved with her name, and gasped. This was _her _room. She could feel it. The walls were paneled in wood, and the floor was stone with a small rug by the twin bed in the corner. A desk was against one wall. Her trunk was at the foot of her bed. On opening it she noticed that it was empty, and that all her clothes were hung up in the closet. Lily noticed a second door, and opened it. It led to a large bathroom, with a shower stall, huge tub, and two sinks. A second door opened to admit James Potter. He looked around the bathroom, eyebrows raised appreciatively.

"Can I see your room?" Lily asked.

"If I can see yours."

"Go ahead."

Lily slipped into James's room. It was much the same, but his bed was king sized. Lily returned to the common room just as James came from her room. "Let's check out the third door, and then I'm going to bed."

"It's probably just another entrance to the bathroom," James replied dismissively, throwing himself on the couch.

Lily opened the door. "I'm reasonably sure that this is not another entrance to the bathroom."

"What is it?"

"Come and see."

It was a narrow passage that led to a set of stairs. Lily hurried up them, and then turned right along another passage, and came to a door. Lily opened it.

"Lily!" she heard a familiar voice shout out. "Where did you come from?"

"Hey Alice. There's a passage from our Head rooms to here," Lily replied excitedly.

"Where?" Marlene joined the conversation. Lily turned back to the door she had come through to show her friends. But it had vanished. In its place was the same portrait that had been in front of the Head rooms.

The man in the picture smiled at her. "The password here is the same one you chose to get into the Head rooms from the other entrance. You may think it, if you do not wish your friends to be able to get in."

_"Fat and skinny went to bed,  
Fat rolled over and skinny was dead,  
Fat called the doctor  
and the doctor said,  
'What's that pancake doing in a bed?'"_ Lily recited silently.

The picture swung open. "Are you coming?" Lily asked. Alice and Marlene hurried after her.

* * *

James walked behind Lily to the Gryffindor common room. He glanced around the room, looking for his friends. He went over and sat down next to them. "Hey."

"How did it go?" Sirius asked eagerly.

James sighed. "I'm not sure. She didn't yell at me, I didn't hex any innocent bystanders, I didn't ask her out, and I tried to have a decent conversation."

"How did that go?" Remus wondered.

"We talked about passwords, poetry, and her sister's boyfriend. But I'm not sure...It was just a casual conversation, and pretty short." He changed the subject. "Want to see the Head rooms?"

"Show us!" Sirius hurried over to the portrait. "What's the password?"

James snorted. "You think I want you bursting in on me every hour of the night?"

They set off down the passage. Remus drew up to James. "Remember, James, you have to be friends before anything can happen. If you want, I can watch and see how she reacts around you."

"Fine."

"She and I get along pretty well. Watch, and try to learn. And relax," Remus added, "You know we're just friends.'

* * *

Lily had just given Alice and Marlene the grand tour and they were now stretched out on the couches, talking.

"You didn't scream at him?"

Lily shook her head.

"He didn't hex Snape?"

Lily shook her head.

"He didn't ask you out?"

Lily shook her head.

"You had a civil conversation between yourself and Potter that lasted more than thirty seconds and did not end in a duel?"

Lily nodded.

Marlene collapsed back on the couch. "These are quite amazing developments."

"Lily..." Alice asked thoughtfully. "Are you sure he doesn't fancy you any more?"

"Alice," Lily replied frustratedly, as though they had had this conversation dozens of times before (which as a matter of fact they had_ not)_, "He never liked me. The first time he asked me out, it was just a dare, or bet, or something to do with his friends. Then I refused. It was the first time any one had ever turned him down, and so he wanted to date me for a week and dump me, so he could say he can have any girl he wants. Although," she added after a pause, "I was surprised by how nice he was. It wasn't unpleasant being with him. Mind you, if he was like that all year and so were his friends, this year would be a lot more pleasant for all of us. I get the feeling we'll be spending a good deal of time with them."

The middle door banged open just as Lily finished talking and flopped back on her couch. It was the Marauders. That was the name the four boys - James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew - had given themselves. They stopped in the doorway. The girls had taken all the couches, and there were only two armchairs left for four boys. Of course, two people could sit on each couch, but there were three problems. 1) the girls were_ stretched out_ on the couches and 2) they didn't seem inclined to move and 3) There was no love lost between the girls and the Marauders. James and Sirius stood, wondering what to do. Portly Peter lurked behind them. Remus walked over to Lily.

"Mind if I sit?"

"Of course not." Lily shifted so Remus could sit down next to her and then put her legs back up on the arm of the couch. "Mind if I lean on you?"

"Of course not."

Lily leaned back, yawning, and rested her head on his shoulder, wiggling a bit to get comfortable, and then she relaxed into him.

"You traitor, Moony! How can you go and run off with a girl and leave us to fend for ourselves?" Sirius asked in mock outrage.

Lily fixed her gaze on him. "First of all, Black, he's sitting right here, and second of all, politeness works wonders."

"McKinnon, might I please have the honor of sitting next to you?"

Marlene looked at him contemplatively for a moment then jerked her head to the side. "Armchair right there, Black."

Sirius glared at Lily and Remus. "See! It doesn't work."

"That's because there's an armchair right there, Black," Lily repeated.

Sirius groaned and dropped into it, his long, shaggy dark hair obscuring his gray eyes. James claimed the other, and Peter announced he was going back to the common room.

"How come?" Alice asked. "It's a lot nicer in here."

Peter stammered out some excuse about seeing some other friend and unpacking.

"I wonder what he's _actually_ doing," Alice mused.

Sirius shrugged. "Probably off with some girl. Who cares?"

Lily rose and snagged a book from the shelves, dropping it onto James' lap on her way back to Remus. "Christabel," she informed him. "Read it and see what you think."

* * *

**A/N I won't pester you about reviews constantly, but this is my first fic on this site, and I would appreciate you letting me know what you think, and if you have any suggestions. **

**The quote was from Christabel, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The other, (Fat and Skinny) is one version of many. Author unknown.**


	3. Chapter 3

**The Last Year**

Chapter 3

First, Second, Third, Fourth Years

Lily sat in the Gryffindor common room, about to begin an essay. She pulled a quill from her bag and began to write, her eyes trained on the textbook, not her parchment. After a moment, she glanced at her paragraph. _No. I didn't write that. Why would I write that?_ she thought. And then she remembered a jinx she had just learned last week.

"Potter!" she growled, stalking over to where he was sprawled on an armchair, laughing with his friends.

"Has it finally dawned on you that you fancy me, Evans?" he drawled.

She ignored him. "You did this." She shoved the parchment into his hands.

It read,

_Dear James,_

_I'm writing to say that I fancy you, and would love to go with you to Hogsmeade. Or even into a broom closet..._

_Love, Lily._

_P.S. You have the nicest eyes; a beautiful hazel green...and your hair...looking like you just got off your broom...and that body of yours..._

"Why, Evans," he said delightedly. "You could have just told me, you know. I would be happy to have obliged."

"Take the jinx off my quill," she bit out, dropping it into his lap.

"What's the magic wo-ord?" he sang.

Lily whipped her wand from her pocket and trained in on his face. He sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Relax, Evans. I'll change it back." He tapped it once with his wand, muttering something under his breath.

Lily took it back and stalked over to her seat, finding a new piece of parchment. She set the tip of the quill to the parchment and began to write. A fountain of ink blasted half the common room. A moment later, an ink-covered Lily Evans screeched. "Potter!"

Potter was sent to the hospital wing ten minutes later, covered in boils and with his head enlarged to twice its original size.

* * *

Fourth Year

Lily walked into the Great Hall and stopped. There were pink confetti hearts raining down on her usual seat at the Gryffindor Table, and a card sat on her place at the table. Lily opened it, her face getting steadily redder as she read until she stood, whirled around, eyes flashing and asked the nearest person where Potter was. The little boy stammered out a response and Lily ran out of the Hall, wand drawn.

Potter ended up in the hospital wing, his hair waist length, neon pink, squeezed into a tight, frilly dress that displayed quite a bit of his nonexistent cleavage, and his face powdered and primped to look like a girl's, with the excessive use of a badly applied permanent makeup charm.

* * *

End of Third year

Lily rushed from the girl's dormitories into the common room, followed from a slight distance by her dorm mates, all evidently furious. "Potter! How _dare_ you!"

The person in question stood with a silky smile. "Yes, Evans?"

"How dare you! You may be mad at me, but you don't need to drag my friends into it! Those were our _personal_ belongings and you had no right to be doing _anything_ with them! This is the lowest of lows! You've never done something like this before, and it was WAY OUT OF LINE!"

Sirius looked at James. "I think you've got her attention, mate."

James nodded. Meanwhile, Lily was still screaming at him.

"But you needn't be mad at me, Evans," he cut in smoothly when she paused for breath. "You see, it was simply a ploy to gain your attention so I would have a chance to pledge my undying love."

"You did this for ATTENTION?!" she screamed. "That is PATHETIC! You went digging through our bloody UNDERWEAR because you wanted to TALK TO ME? Did you expect me to WANT to talk to you?" She approached him, terrifyingly and dangerously calm all of a sudden. "Well let me tell you something, Potter." She paused, holding his eyes, then continued in a level, strong voice. "You threw our underclothes all over our dorm and dumped paint in our drawers. It took us nearly an hour to find and clean everything. But don't worry, because we don't care so much about that. What we _do_ care about is the fact that you went into our bathroom. Not that you swept everything off the counter or brushed your hair with our brushes, or sprayed perfume and other products on the floor, or dulled the blades on our razors. What we care about is the fact that _you_ went snooping in our cabinets. You _looked through_ our feminine products and opened _every single package_-"

A couple of the girls listening gasped and sent glares at the boys.

"-and not only did you open the boxes and bags, but also every individual wrapper and _dumped _what was inside of them all over the floor. Do you think that floor is clean, _mister Potter_? And do you know that we, as of now, cannot use anything from the supply in the cabinet, which happened to hold _four year's joint supply _and which was least three hundred Galleon's worth? So, Potter, for the past hour we've been trying to decide exactly what your punishment should be. Alice?"

Alice didn't seem to notice the whole of Gryffindor staring at her, or the fact that this was a rather embarrassing situation. She spoke in a clear, angry voice. "You are going to go into Hogsmeade tomorrow. You are going to buy exactly what you ruined, plus some extra, and _it will be on you_. You will pay every cent, and you will go into the women's store, and provide us with new underclothes. Any questions?" The tone of her voice implied that asking a question would be a bad idea.

Sirius Black did it anyway. "I figure that since you want us to go buy your girly...stuff, you owe it to us to explain how the pointy ones on plastic sticks work. Oh, and I for one, have no intention of going to buy you anything. What are you going to do, make me?"

Lily stepped forward again, deceptively calm. She came closer and closer until she was close enough to touch him. "Do you know why you're going to do it, Black?" she breathed, paying no attention as to how the common room watched eagerly, and placing a finger on his chest to emphasize her words. "Because if you don't intend to, or ask how our stuff works ever again, or let this performance repeat itself, I'm going to give the female population of Hogwarts a job. A job they're going to be _begging_ me to do. Do you know what they'll be doing, Sirius Black?"

His eyes darted away from hers, and her voice dropped further. "They are going to be making your life a _living hell."_

"And we'll be all too happy to do it," a first year girl chimed in.

"Please," he rolled his eyes. "What do you expect to be able to do? Besides, you girls couldn't talk to each other and agree if the world depended on it."

"No?" Lily asked a smile on her face. She turned away, and made her way up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. "Watch and see," she said over her shoulder.

Every single girl in the common room stood, dropped what they were doing, and followed Lily up the stairs. They made a single file line in complete silence. They wound up the stairs in complete silence, and then they stopped on the balcony overlooking the common room.

"We have two words to say to you, James Potter and Sirius Black. Fuck off." Lily showed them the finger and so did every other girl, simultaneously. Then they continued single file and silently up the stairs, until one let out a giggle, and another laughed and so on, and the common room echoed with the girls' laughter until the last in line passed from view, and seven doors slammed.

The boys sat dumbfounded in the common room. Remus was the first to break the silence. "Was that planned?"

The news spread quickly and for all of a week, no girl at Hogwarts would speak or even look at the two. Even a few female teachers gave them the silent treatment. Of course, being the Hogwarts heartthrobs, they were used to attention, and a week later gave a public apology and provided money for the girls' necessities. They wouldn't be caught dead in that particular store.

* * *

Fifth Year

'All right Snivellus?' said James loudly.

Snape reacted so fast it was as though he had been expecting an attack: dropping his bag, he plunged his hand inside his robes and his wand was halfway into the air when James shouted, '_Expelliarmus!_'

Snape's wand flew twelve feet into the air and fell with a little thud in the grass behind him. Sirius let out a bark of laughter.

'_Impedimenta!_' he said, pointing his wand at Snape, who was knocked off his feet halfway through a dive towards his own fallen wand.

Students all around had turned to watch. Some of them had got to their feet and were edging nearer. Some looked apprehensive, others entertained.

Snape lay panting on the ground. James and Sirius advanced on him, wands raised, James glancing over his shoulder at the girls at the water's edge as he went. Wormtail was on his feet now, watching hungrily, edging around Lupin to get a clearer view.

'How'd the exam go, Snivelly?' said James.

'I was watching him. His nose was touching the parchment,' said Sirius viciously. 'There'll be great grease marks all over it, so they won't be able to read a word.'

Several people watching laughed; Snape was clearly unpopular.

Wormtail sniggered shrilly. Snape was trying to get up, but the jinx was still operating on him; he was struggling, as though bound by invisible ropes.

'You - wait,' he panted, staring up at James with an expression of purest loathing, 'you - wait!'

'Wait for what?' said Sirius coolly. 'What're you going to do, Snivelly, wipe your nose on us?'

Snape let out a scream of mixed swear words and hexes, but with his wand ten feet away nothing happened.

'Wash out your mouth,' said James coldly. '_Scourgify!_'

Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth at once; the froth was covering his lips, making him gag, choking him -

'Leave him ALONE!'

James and Sirius looked round. James's free hand immediately jumped to his hair.

It was one of the girls from the lake edge. She had thick, dark red hair that fell to her shoulders, and startlingly green almond-shaped eyes

'All right, Evans?' said James, and the tone of his voice was suddenly pleasant, deeper, more mature.

'Leave him alone,' Lily repeated. She was looking at James with every sign of great dislike. 'What's he done to you?'

'Well,' said James, appearing to deliberate the point, 'it's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean '

Many of the surrounding students laughed, Sirius and Wormtail included, but Lupin, still apparently intent on his book, didn't, and nor did Lily.

'You think you're funny,' she said coldly. 'But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him _alone_.'

'I will if you go out with me, Evans,' said James quickly. 'Go on go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again.'

Behind him, the Impediment Jinx was wearing off. Snape was beginning to inch towards his fallen wand, spitting out soapsuds as he crawled.

'I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid,' said Lily.

'Bad luck, Prongs,' said Sirius briskly, and turned back to Snape. 'OI!'

But too late; Snape had directed his wand straight at James; there was a flash of light and a gash appeared on the side of James's face, spattering his robes with blood. James whirled about: a second flash of light later, Snape was hanging upside-down in the air, his robes falling over his head to reveal skinny, pallid legs and a pair of graying underpants.

Many people in the small crowd cheered; Sirius, James and Wormtail roared with laughter.

Lily, whose furious expression had twitched for an instant as though she was going to smile, said, 'Let him down!'

'Certainly,' said James and he jerked his wand upwards; Snape fell into a crumpled heap on the ground. Disentangling himself from his robes he got quickly to his feet, wand up, but Sirius said, '_Petrificus Totalus!_' and Snape keeled over again, rigid as a board.

'LEAVE HIM ALONE!' Lily shouted. She had her own wand out now. James and Sirius eyed it warily.

'Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you,' said James earnestly.

'Take the curse off him, then!'

James sighed deeply, then turned to Snape and muttered the counter-curse.

'There you go,' he said, as Snape struggled to his feet. 'You're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus -'

'I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!'

Lily blinked.

'Fine,' she said coolly. 'I won't bother in the future. And I'd wash your pants if I were you, _Snivellus_.'

'Apologize to Evans!' James roared at Snape, his wand pointed threateningly at him.

'I don't want _you_ to make him apologize ' Lily shouted, rounding on James. 'You're as bad as he is.'

'What?' yelped James. 'I'd NEVER call you a - you-know-what!'

'Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can - I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK.'

She turned on her heel and hurried away.

'Evans!' James shouted after her. 'Hey, EVANS!'

But she didn't look back.

* * *

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not interested."

"I'm sorry!"

"Save your breath."

It was nighttime. Lily, who was wearing a dressing gown, stood with her arms folded in from of the portrait of the Fat Lady at the entrance to Gryffindor tower.

"I only came out because Mary told me you were threatening to sleep here."

"I was. I would have done. I never meant to call you Mudblood. It just-"

"Slipped out? There was no pity in Lily's voice. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for year. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious Death Eater friends-you see, you don't even deny it! YOu don't even deny that's what you're all aiming to be! You can't wait to join You-Know-Who, can you?"

He opened his mouth, but closed it without speaking. "I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine."

"No- listen, I didn't mean-"

"-to call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

He struggled on the verge of speech, but with a contemptuous look she turned and climbed back through the portrait hole.

* * *

Lily lay in bed the first day of her seventh and last year of Hogwarts mulling over all the times she and Potter had disagreed. With a history like that, there was no chance they could ever get along well, even with a lot of effort. They just had conflicting personalities. There was no way it could work.

* * *

**A/N I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. I hope you like it, too. I forgot to add a disclaimer in the last two chapters, so here it is: I am not J.K. Rowling. I am just playing with her characters, and not making a penny.**

**Again, I won't badger you for reviews, but I would appreciate you telling me what you thought and where I could improve. **


	4. Chapter 4

**The Last Year **

Chapter Four

Lily was nervous. Extremely nervous. And she had a reason for it. All of the first week, she and Potter had barely spoken, except for to discuss Head duties. When they did talk, he was polite, straightforward, and acted as if he had known her a week instead of seven years. No personality to the discussions. Lily rather thought it was like talking to a robot. Even if they shared the Head dorms, she barely saw him. Lily was up at five, Potter slept in, Lily hung out with her friends, studied, and went to bed early, Potter never studied (or at least not that she had seen in seven years), hung out with his friends and rarely came back before midnight.

But that wasn't what she was nervous about. She was nervous about the fact that tonight she would be patrolling with him. For two and a half hours. Alone with him.

She didn't know if she was nervous that she might get back to his old self and tease her (or worse, try to kiss her), or that he would be a boring robotic gentleman the whole time. Neither were good options.

Lily thought on this for several minutes, then realized with a jolt that it was nine o'clock - time to meet him in the Great Hall. Lily slipped on her cloak and hurried out of the Head Rooms. She picked up speed as she came closer to the Great Hall, worried she would be late.

Lily looked around, slightly breathless. Potter wasn't to be seen. This irritated her to no end - he had chosen the time and the place, she had jogged halfway around the castle, and the prat couldn't even be bothered to show up. Just then he walked in the door.

"About time," Lily grumbled, sliding off the Ravenclaw table where she had perched to wait.

He blinked at her from behind his round glasses. "Sorry."

"I talked to the Hufflepuff sixth year prefects- they're patrolling tonight- and they're doing most of the corridors, so we've got the Astronomy Tower, the North Tower Balcony, and the seventh and sixth floors."

Potter nodded silently and they walked out of the Great Hall, side by side.

* * *

More than an hour and a half later, Lily was quite frustrated. Potter had opened and held all doors for her, treated her with the respect one should show a lady, and yet _not said a single word_. The patrol was more than half over, and Lily was bored out of her mind._  
_

Lily sizzled angrily on the inside, wondering whether she should say something to start a conversation, but didn't for fear of sounding like a hypocrite. They trekked up five flights of stairs to the sixth floor, and walked around it, sending various people to bed. The same for the seventh floor. Now they were almost at the Astronomy Tower.

Finally it burst out of her. "Are you intending on saying a single word to me during the course of two and a half hours, Potter?"

He looked at her confusedly, and Lily elaborated. "If I have to walk around the castle for more than twelve hours a month in complete silence, I will go insane, and it will be _your fault_."

"How is that my fault?"

"Because you're not talking to me, you great bloody prat!"

"You didn't want me to," he said simply.

"When. On Earth. Did I say that?"

"Every time I asked you out."

Now Lily felt foolish. He was right. After she refused him, she usually followed it up with some comment about him leaving her alone, or why did he have to talk to her so much, or couldn't he shut up for a few minutes.

Lily hesitated a moment, looking at the silent grounds from the very top of the Astronomy Tower. "I don't mind talking to you as long as you refrain from asking me out, making inappropriate comments, badmouthing my friends and so on. It's stuff like that I don't like. Also, it's just creepy when you're that polite. It's like talking to a robot with no personality"

"So...you want me to be rude?" the poor bloke sounded quite confused.

"That's not what I'm saying! I just mean...I guess I just want you to act like yourself, just try not to annoy me purposely."

"Even if you're beautiful when you're angry and blushing?" James teased.

Lily flamed up right on cue. "Potter, I haven't been able to stand you for most of my life at Hogwarts. It takes a lot for me to make an effort to be nice to you, and all you can do is take advantage of that and throw it back in my face!" Her voice was steadily rising. "Are you surprised when-"

James cut her off. "You're right, Lily. I'm sorry, and I'll try not to do that anymore."

Lily was shocked. Had James Potter just _apologized_? To her? It sure sounded like it. 'Wow,' she thought. 'And I wasn't even holding him at wandpoint.'

The rest of the patrol passed with the two chatting about various teachers and subjects. The conversation wasn't exactly flowing, and there was still a lot of silence, but Lily was sure it would be easier for them to talk. They just had to give it time.

"Did you ever notice that Slughorn looks like a walrus?"

Lily choked. "A walrus?"

James nodded. "You didn't notice?"

"No, I thought he looked like a bull elephant seal. I've actually heard McGonagall call him that when she was pissed off at him."

James choked this time. "You didn't!"

The redhead nodded. "Oh, yes I did."

Two hours later, Lily's opinion of James Potter had gone up a notch. A tiny notch, but a notch all the same.

* * *

**A/N: After this chapter, I'm going to be switching to Lily's POV, most likely for the rest of the story - It's a lot easier for me to write. I'm also making the chapters shorter, so that I can update more often (although this is short even by those standards. The rest will be longer than this one).**

**Soon I'll have some L/J scenes, and since I have no romantic experience whatsoever (I'm thirteen, so it's hardly surprising) I would appreciate some pointers on it. Or, if anyone were up to writing the scenes, I could just insert them? Any advice is welcome.**


	5. Chapter 5

**The Last Year **

Chapter 5

Lily's POV

* * *

I sat in the Head common room during one of my free periods. That was the biggest perk of seventh year - the teachers drown us in work for the upcoming NEWTs (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests), but to make up for it, we get to drop a couple of the more useless subjects and get free periods instead. Being Head Girl, I had three free periods to make up for an average of an hour a night during which I patrolled and was unable to study

I threw my wand down with a sigh of anger and frustration. It emitted multicolored sparks as it hit the plush brown rug. Transfiguration is my worst subject as it is, and I've always had to work twice as hard as in anything else to stay at the top of the class. Now I've decided I want to be an Auror, and for that you need an Outstanding in Transfiguration, so I've been working twice what I was working before. But it still wasn't paying off!

I just couldn't do this spell right. I was trying to Transfigure a quill into a couch with an intricate, multilayered design of silk with goose feather down and walnut wood. I could do parts of it, but I couldn't concentrate enough to make it a whole - whenever I got the feather down into the cover, the oak wood would begin to dissolve back into a quill. I rushed to fix it, and with my concentration averted, the feathers vanished or the pattern changed.

I flopped down on the rug. If I couldn't do the damn spell when I was fresh, I wouldn't be able to do it if I was exhausted, either. There was no point in wearing myself out. I tried to collect myself, but I couldn't bring myself to try again, so I just lay on my back on the floor, breathing in cadence with the song stuck in my head.

Just as I had relaxed, the portrait hole banged open. It was Potter, of course. We'd been getting along relatively well, but I still feel a bit awkward around him. I don't hold up my end of the conversation very well. But what can I do? I'd hated the bloke for six years. It would take time to change.

Anyway, Potter banged into the common room. He spotted me almost immediately.

"Evans? Are you alright?" A note of panic entered his voice. I suppose I did look rather bad, stretched out on the floor, completely still.

"No," I grumbled. "Transfiguration is the bane of my existence."

He crossed to the coffee table and looked at the textbook. "I could help you, if you wanted."

I raised myself up on one elbow, sure I hadn't heard him correctly. He looked a bit embarrassed and ran his hand through his hair, making it stand on end. "It's just...Transfiguration is my best subject, and I've done this spell before."

"Thanks, but I'll be fine."

Potter gave me an exasperated look. "Evans, don't be stubborn. Get up off the floor and let me help you."

"You'd help me all right...and then demand a kiss in return."

"Why do you say that?" The bloke actually sounded rather insulted.

"You did it in fifth year."

"That was two years ago, Evans! I swear, I'll help and if you feel indebted, you can help me in Charms."

"Fine," I grumbled, getting up and sitting down on the couch opposite him.

"You'll have to come over here," he pointed out amusedly. I came over grudgingly and sat a fair distance away from him. "Now show me how you do the spell."

I muttered the incantation and watched the couch spring up into existence for a brief moment, and then fade into a moldy green pile of feathers and cloth.

"See?" I said, frustrated. "That always happens."

"It's because you're trying to imagine the individual pieces, and when you move from one to the next, the concentration splits and the couch vanishes. You have to try to see the couch as a whole, as one object instead of a series of steps. It's like Potions. Don't think of the porcupine quills and crushed beetles and lizard livers, but think of the completed Pepper-up Potion," Potter lectured me.

His instructions actually made sense. I concentrated, letting myself see the couch in my mind's eye and I whispered the spell. A slight wind tugged at my hair, and a giant sofa appeared a meter or so in front of me. And it was perfect!

"That technique works for most advanced Transfiguration, especially with bigger objects."

"Thanks, Potter!" I beamed at him. "What do you need for Charms?"

"Could you just proofread my essay?" I nodded and he pulled it out of his bag, handing it to me.

Several minutes later I glanced up. "It's good; just a few spelling mistakes which I fixed for you, and in the fourth paragraph, here," I pointed it out, "I added something about the Knitting Charm, since it's really similar to the topic."

"I don't think I'm ever going to need a Knitting Charm, thank you," James sounded rather disgusted with the idea.

"For you information, Potter, it's for knitting _flesh_ together, not yarn."

He grunted and flipped through my textbook looking for the information.

"Page 415."

Potter nodded in thanks and turned to the page.

A little while later he stood and announced, "I'm gonna go take a shower."

"Oh. I was going to..."

"You take it here, and I'll go to the prefect's bathroom. It's just around the corner now, remember?"

I hesitated. "Alright. Thanks, Potter."

* * *

I stepped out of the huge bathroom, wearing only my underwear and bra. I hurried up to my room and grabbed a bag of sweets. I took the bag and a random book downstairs and curled up on the couch, lying my jeans and t-shirt next to me. I'd always had a thing for lying curled up, scantily clothed with a book and sweets.

I knew Potter wouldn't be back for ages, because I was already more than halfway through my shower before I heard the portrait hole open, so Potter had just left. He always took long showers, and adding that to the walk back, I would guess I had about fifteen minutes, if not more.

I had just finished the first page and stretched my legs briefly when the portrait hole swung open, and Potter stepped through. He stopped dead in shock, and I quickly curled my legs to my chest.

"Evans? What are you doing?"

Satisfied that I was concealing any parts which might be of interest to him, I said, "I am lying on the couch in my knickers eating sweets and trying to finish a book, but I have unfortunately been interrupted."

Potter goggled at me. "That doesn't explain why you don't have any clothes on."

"Am I disturbing you, Potter?"

Sirius Black's voice drawled from behind his best friend. "I wouldn't be worried about that, Evans. I'd be worried about how long this group of adolescent boys are going to be able to control themselves."

Group? I looked. Remus and Peter were there, too. Wonderful. Four seventeen year old boys whom I really don't like all that much are seeing me in my underwear. Just bloody wonderful. I could feel my face heating up to match my hair, and tried to seem unperturbed.

"Well, then, _Black_, turn around so I can change without you goggling at me like that!"

Black smirked and turned his back, as did Remus and Peter. Potter still stared at me. I glared at him, and he hastily turned around. I tugged on my jeans and slipped on my shirt.

"You can turn around now."

Black smirked again. "Would you like to tell us exactly what you were doing, Evans?"

I replied as haughtily as I could. "As a matter of fact, Black, I wouldn't. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to find my friends."

I stepped through the portrait hole, but as I went, I could hear the raucous laughter of teenage boys. I sighed.

* * *

**A/N: Let me know if you prefer Lily's POV, or third person. Next chapter I'm going to have it James' POV, and little to no Lily action. I want to clear up some questions about the Marauders and James' feelings. Also, I'm sorry if you think that that scene is rather weird, but I had writers block and that was all I managed to write in more than two hours of trying.**


	6. Chapter 6

**The Last Year**

**Chapter 6**

* * *

Sirius laughed, slapping James on the back. "That was one of the dumbest things you've ever done."

"No it wasn't. Being friends with you lot was the stupidest thing I've ever done."

"He's right, James," Remus agreed.

"Fine then. Gang up on me, why don't you."

"I'm just telling you the truth, Prongs," Remus said patiently. "And the truth is that you may have just ruined your chances with Lily."

"How is that?" Sirius demanded. "Sure, she wasn't too happy, but she wasn't screaming or hexing you, so she wasn't as mad as she is sometimes."

James grunted.

A girl's voice, higher than that of the Marauders, sounded from the doorway. "She wasn't mad at all, just disappointed and resigned."

They all looked to the door. Alice stood there, her round, sweet face frowning slightly as she spoke.

"She's not mad?" James asked hopefully.

"No-o-o...not exactly..."

"That's good, then!" Sirius flipped the hair out of his face and grinned at James.

"No, not really." Alice winced as James' face fell and she hastened to explain herself. "See, before it didn't matter so much what you did, because she hated you. That doesn't mean she liked it, but it didn't affect her very much. She didn't expect you to change. But then you did, and she let herself start to like you a little bit, and maybe even trust you, so now it's all the worse when you let her down." She looked intently at James. "Do you understand? It's the like difference between an enemy telling you you eat like a pig, and your friend telling you you eat like a pig. It's because you friend's opinion matters so much more to you, and they're less likely to lie. So using that, she'd thought you'd just changed for the better, and she liked and trusted you, it just disappointed her when you did that."

"Whoa, Prewett, that's the most I've ever heard you say at once."

Alice ignored Sirius and continued talking. "And it's also the difference between your enemy and your best friend not apologizing and trying to get along again." She winked at James, and was out of the dorm as fast as she had come in.

* * *

Lily flopped down onto her bed, lying rigidly on her back with her eyes boring holes in the ceiling, the last ten minutes replaying through her mind. "This is what I get. This is what I get for starting to trust Potter. What did I expect? He could change the very things that make him James Potter, just because he wants to go on a date with me? As if...but he could at least respect the promises he made at the beginning of the year. But...Severus was asking for it. I know he was. I would've done the same thing. So I don't really have a right to be disappointed in him, now do I?" Lily mused out loud.

Suddenly she sat bolt upright, swung her legs off the side of the bed and dashed for the door. "Where are you going?" Marlene yelled after her.

"Head rooms!" Lily hollered back.

As she ran down the stairs two at a time and leaped off the last one, she slipped on the polished stone and barely avoided crashing into someone. Whoever it was grabbed her upper shoulders to keep her from falling.

"Thanks," Lily gasped, looking briefly up into her savior's eyes.

It was none other than the person she wanted to talk to. James Potter.

* * *

James Potter POV

After Alice gave me that lecture, I headed straight downstairs to try to find Lily to apologize. Then who should come barreling down the steps but the lily herself? I assumed she would try to dash off and hide, because that's what any of my ex-girlfriends would do, but I always forget that Lily's not like other girls. And that's why I love her.

Anyway, back to the story. Since I assumed she would just run off, I talked as fast as I could. "Listen, Li- Evans, I'm really sorry I tried to curse Snape. But he was taunting Sirius about his family, and I know you don't agree with it, but I can't contain myself when I'm around him, and I'm sorry, but-"

"James, shut up."

"I know, and I'll stop talking, but I wanted to apologize, and-"

"James, shut up." Lily said more forcefully. I shut up. "I've been thinking about it, and Severus deserved it, and he has most of the time, and I was just missing our friendship so I took it out on you. So I'm sorry." I opened my mouth and she hushed me again. "But I'm not saying I want you to humiliate him, all right? A hex or jinx is fine, but that day after exams in fifth year was too much." She looked at me imploringly.

I smiled at her wonderingly, having just realized what she said a moment ago. "Lily, you called me James."

"Yes, and?"

"You've never called me James before. It's always been Potter, or something rather...derogatory."

She shrugged and bit her lip sheepishly. I couldn't look away. The soft lip curled inward slightly as she worried at it with her front teeth. I tore my gaze away as she spoke. "I know, but I didn't consider you my friend before."

This pleased me to no end. "I'm your friend?"

"As long as you don't annoy me too much again."

I bowed and mock saluted. "Yes ma'am."

She laughed and her stomach growled.

"Have you eaten all day, Lily Evans?"

She shook her head cheerfully. "Nope. Why?"

"You haven't eaten all day and you're in this good of a mood?" She nodded. I whistled. "Want to grab something from the kitchen with me?"

She hesitated. "As friends, of course," I hurried to reassure her." She nodded.

"All right."


	7. Chapter 7

The Last Year

Chapter 7

Lily's POV

"That's actually good?" James asks me dubiously.

"There's a reason I asked for it, isn't there, Potter?"

He looked at me. "I suppose, but think about it. You're drinking undiluted lemon juice through a peppermint straw."

"Yes, and?"

"Well, it sounds gross."

"Well, it's not." I glared at him. This reminded me of home. My mother had always loved both lemon and peppermint, and she passed that gene (if it is one) on to me. I wasn't going to have my favorite concoction criticized.

He didn't say anything else for a few minutes, just stuffed himself on butterbeer and sweets.

"How are you not obese, eating like that?" I marveled.

"Quidditch keeps me in shape."

I eyed him suspiciously. "You're the Chaser. You sit on a broom and toss a ball around. That can't be it."

"I run, too."

He sounded guilty about it, for some reason. "Now that makes more sense. Where do you usually run?" I grabbed the extra bottle of butterbeer and took a gulp.

"On the grounds. Around the lake sometimes."

"How often?"

"Almost every day."

"What time?"

"Are you planning on ambushing me, Evans?" he grinned, waggling his eyebrows.

"Of course not. Just tell me."

"'Bout six in the morning."

I nodded slowly, storing that bit of information away, taking another sip of butterbeer. Now James was looking at me suspiciously. "Why did you want to know?"

I thought furiously for a way to distract him. "Oh, no reason," I said lightly, flipping my hair out of my face and leaning forward, holding my shoulders in a way that made the neck of my shirt droop - not much, definitely less than an inch.

James's eyes drifted down and I saw his Adam's apple bob in an unmistakable gulp. He looked at the neck of my shirt silently for a couple seconds, before his eyes slid up, ever so slowly, to my face. The look on his face did something deep inside me, and I suddenly felt awful about using my wily female charms to seduce him. I straightened up, pushing my shoulders back and grabbed my glass. "Hmm..." I searched for something to say. "Were you the ones who put the firecracker in Dumbledore's dinner in second year?" I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

James grinned roguishly, momentarily distracted. "'Course it was us...who else could it have been?"

I smiled at him and the tension dissolved. we sat for close to another hour, talking quietly and periodically refilling our glasses and plates. And then...

He held my gaze, hazel eyes beseeching behind his wire glasses. "Evans...will you go to Hogsmeade with me next weekend?"

My jaw dropped. "Are we back to this again, Potter?" I asked bitterly.

His shoulders slumped and he ran a hand through his hair. "I just thought we were getting along really well...that maybe you'd finally come around."

"Yes, we were getting along well. I was actually enjoying your company, but did anything I do indicate I wanted more than your friendship?"

"No…" he admitted.

l stood angrily, my chair skidding back several feet. "So why the hell did you ask me out again, Potter?" I grabbed my drink and almost ran to the door, wrenching it open and then slamming it behind me.

I stalked through the castle, my bottled up fury making me want to punch someone. I paid no attention to where I was going, just letting my feet lead me. Several minutes later, I found myself in a deserted Great Hall, just a few meters away from the double doors that led outside. I glanced furtively around before opening the door and slipping through.

My breath billowed in the chilly air, and I wrapped my cloak tighter around myself before I set off pacing toward the lake. I had barely covered twenty meters and I was already chilled to the bone. In an attempt to stave off the cold, I began to jog. Before I knew it, I was running full tilt and I knew I didn't want to stop.

I don't know how long my feet carried me, but eventually I turned around and jogged back to the castle. Thankfully, no one had noticed and locked the open door. I hurried inside, sighing at the warmth.

Now that my anger was spent, I could think about Ja- Potter without feeling the need to punch a wall. Why had I reacted so strongly? I was at the entrance to Gryffindor Tower before I thought of a possible reason. I had actually began to like Potter as a friend, and to trust him. I enjoyed his company. I suppose that the reason I reacted so strongly was that I didn't want something like a romantic relationship to jeopardise our friendship.

"Tumbleweed," I whispered to the Fat Lady, who looked grumpily at me before swinging open. Sweeping my eyes through the common room, I noted the Marauders were sitting by the fire, talking quietly. They all looked up as I came in, and I made a split second decision. "James?" I called softly. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

He hesitated, then stood and approached me. His expression was guarded. "I'm sorry about how I reacted when you asked me...It's just that I've really started to appreciate your friendship, and I didn't want everything to be like fifth year again -"

James cut me off. "It's okay. And I understand what you're saying." He ran a hand through his hair nervously. "And...I won't ask you again. I'm fine with being just friends. Really."

I smiled at him gratefully and gave him a fleeting hug. "I'm going to bed them. Good night."


End file.
